C-USA discussion

[Pony_Fan]

Is SMU better off in the new C-USA than the WAC in basketball?
In the old C-USA I would say no comparison but not in next year's conference.

If you say yes, why? Will it really help recruiting? Memphis is the only decent team.

[MustangStealth]

UAB is pretty good too, and don't forget that UTEP, Tulsa, and Rice are coming with us. Central Florida is respectable, and they will also be joining next year.

[LA_Mustang]

Memphis is a little better than decent. They have one of the best players in the country (Sean Banks who’s a sophomore) and one of the best freshmen in the country (Darius Washington). To give you an idea about their younger guys, they signed five kids outta high school in 04 (two 5 stars, a 4 star and two 3 stars). Any one of these guys would’ve been our best recruit. I’m not sure how they ranked but it had to be a top 10 class. Right now, Memphis is a legit top 20 team.

Talent wise, I would say the rest of C-USA is pretty similar to the current WAC, just deeper. There wont be any easy nights. The big difference will be that C-USA is much more athletic.

[Charleston Pony]

CUSA will be better because it's eastern media exposure vs. western. Also, Memphis is a higher rated program than any from the WAC. The strongest member of any conference is the one that sets the bar. Everyone else is trying to catch up. If you can't be BCS, raise the bar as high as possible.

[Sam I Am]

Sometimes a conferecne builds up some credits for the NCAA tournament. After the gains fo losses, what kind of standing will C-USA then have?

[EastStang]

Memphis and Tulsa have long had good names for making runs in the tournament. UTEP and UH have national championships in basketball. Tulane had the SMU equivalent of a scandel in basketball (remember point shaving?). UCF is good and in a decent market Orlando. Certainly losing Marquette, DePaul, St. Louis, Louisville, UNCC, and Cincinnati were big losses. I wonder how life for some of them will be in the BE. With Pitt, Syracuse, UConn, Villanova, Georgetown, ND, Louisville, Marquette, DePaul, and Cincy all looking for tournament berths. There may at some point be trouble in paradise. UNCC might find the A-10 a bit uncomfortable, too. GW, Xavier, St. Joe's, UMass, Richmond all give teams fits and will be looking for post season bids. A solid team in CUSA could come to the end of the season with 20+ wins.